SOFA not sitting well in Iraq Dec 2, 2008
Some have accused him of being an agent of the Iranians while others claim he is the only Iraqi Shi'ite leader who enjoys certain independence from the mullahs of Tehran and wants Iraq independent and free of any foreign influence, be it American or Persian ... Muqtada is currently making use of his relative independence from Tehran and promoting Iranian objection to SOFA. The Iranians are using both him and Maliki, for different purposes, to advance their interests in Iraq. (Asia Times Online)
Iran to set up marriage bureaux to help young find suitable spouses Dec 2, 2008
Finding a suitable partner is a tricky business as men and women are limited in how much they can meet socially, BBC Tehran correspondent Jon Leyne says. Most Iranian marriages are not exactly arranged, but relatives often take it on themselves to introduce suitable candidates. (BBC News -- Africa)
Failed states rule conversation at debate launch Dec 2, 2008
Tehran Times, Iran - Monday, Dec. 1, 2008. NewsBusters - Monday, Dec. 1, 2008. (National Post)
Iran says Canada abusing human rights Dec 2, 2008
TEHRAN Iran accused Canada on Monday of violating the rights of its indigenous people, after Ottawa proposed a UN resolution condemning human rights violations in the Islamic Republic. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi also chided Western countries for talking about human rights at the same time as they were selling weapons to conflict zones. (Globe and Mail)
How Hoder galvanized the Iranians of 'Tehranto' Dec 2, 2008
com: How Hoder galvanized the Iranians of 'Tehranto ... How Hoder galvanized the Iranians of 'Tehranto ... In 2005, he used his blog to drop hints that he'd travelled to Tehran, commenting on the traffic and weather. (Globe and Mail)
Iraq-Iran war dead are exchanged Dec 1, 2008
It is also the first ever direct contact between Tehran and Baghdad to secure the release of their war dead. Previously they had done this via third parties or diplomatic channels. (BBC News)
NEWSWEEK: Media Lead Sheet/December 8, 2008 Issue (on newsstands Monday, December 1) Dec 1, 2008
"Talk Tough With Tehran" (p ... Though Tehran wants nukes for both defensive and offensive purposes, it's not clear the Supreme Leader would sacrifice anything to get nuclear weapons, and history shows his government responds to outside pressure. (PR Newswire)
Iran Shaping Up As Key Foreign Policy Challenge For Obama Dec 1, 2008
As a result, analysts say Obama s victory has created a chance to bridge the divide between the United States - dubbed "The Great Satan" by Tehran s Islamic leadership -- and Iran, which Bush called part of an "axis of evil" along with Iraq and North Korea ... On November 11, ElBaradei said he was encouraged by Obama s openness toward Iran, adding that it could make Tehran more forthcoming with the IAEA. ... Washington cut diplomatic ties with Iran following the 1979 revolution and the abduction... (EurasiaNet.org)
Iran Proposes Nuclear Plants With Arab Countries Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran Iran's official news agency says Tehran has proposed building joint light-water nuclear power plants with neighboring Arab countries ... The U.S. and some of its allies claim Iran is secretly trying to develop nuclear weapons a charge Tehran denies. (Fox News)
Iran wants 2 million barrels a day OPEC cut Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran - Iranian state TV says the country's Oil Ministry has proposed an OPEC production cut of 2 million barrels per day. The cartel is grappling with how to reverse plunging crude prices, but ended a meeting in Cairo Saturday without announcing an output cut, leaving any such decision to its next meeting, in Algeria on Dec. 17. (MSNBC -- Politics)
Iran sees no sign of U.S. policy change with Obama Dec 1, 2008
Iran said on Monday U.S. President-elect Barack Obama's comments about its nuclear programme were an indication Washington's stance towards Tehran had not changed. The remarks by Foreign Ministry spokesman Hassan Qashqavi, quoted by the ISNA news agency, were the latest by an Iranian official playing down the prospect of improved ties between the two old foes when Obama takes office in January. (International Herald Tribune -- Business)
Iranian state TV: OPEC cut of 1.5M barrels likely Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran Iranian state TV is reporting that OPEC's Secretary-General says a daily oil production cut of between 1 million and 1 ... El-Badri is in Tehran for an energy conference. (Atlanta Journal-Constitution -- Business)
Iran to stage naval maneuver in December Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Navy Force commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari said that his country will stage a naval drill in and around the Strait of Hormuz next month, Iran's satellite Press TV reported Sunday. The drill will be carried out to test Iran's defensive power and combat readiness, Sayyari was quoted as saying. (Xinhuanet, China)
Iran says oil market oversupply at 2 million bpd Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 30 (Xinhua) -- The global oil market is oversupplied by 2 million barrels per day (bpd), Iran's oil minister said here Sunday, a day after the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) deferred a decision on a new output cut. "Market assessments indicate that the market has around 2 million barrels per day of oversupply," Gholam Hossein Nozari was quoted by Iran's satellite Press TV as saying. (Xinhuanet, China)
Iran to Back US-Iraq Pact After Referendum Dec 1, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran's foreign ministry spokesman says his country will fully back the U.S.-Iraq security pact if it's approved by Iraqis in a referendum next summer ... Qashqavi's comments Monday were the first official reaction and endorsement of the deal from Tehran. (Newsmax)
Three to be hanged in mosque bombing Nov 30, 2008
IRAN TEHRAN - Iran's Revolutionary Court has convicted three men of involvement in a bombing inside a packed mosque that killed 14 people in April and sentenced them to be hanged publicly near the scene of the attack. The court said yesterday that it also found the three men guilty of having links to the United States with orders to destabilize Iran through a campaign of bombings and assassinations. (Boston Globe)
'Fantasist' who spied for Iran gets 10 years in jail Nov 30, 2008
The Iranian-born reservist squaddie, a debt-ridden fantasist, worked as an interpreter for General David Richards, head of operations in Afghanistan, while he was passing secrets by coded email to Tehran ... James, born Esmail Gamasai in Tehran, was this month found guilty of communicating information useful to an enemy. (Mirror.co.uk)
Privatizing Piracy Protection Nov 30, 2008
Then Hezbollah -- the radical Islamic terror group organized and operated by the theocratic government in Tehran, Iran -- began snatching Americans. There were no military options, and more than a dozen diplomatic initiatives failed to win the release of any of those being held. (Townhall.com)
The battle for Iran Nov 29, 2008
Engagement rather than confrontation is also likely to yield more favorable results for Israeli security, as earlier attempts at a "grand bargain" - notably, an entreaty from Tehran to Washington in 2003 that was ignored - clearly indicate ... More coercion is not only demonstrably ineffective, but likely spurs the sorts of reactions in Tehran that the international community abhors. (Boston Globe)
Court orders Iranian man blinded Nov 29, 2008
The ruling was a response to her plea to the court in the Iranian capital Tehran for retribution. "Ever since I was subject to acid being thrown on my face, I have a constant feeling of being in danger," she told the court. (BBC News)
Iran sentences mosque bombers to death Nov 29, 2008
"A revolutionary court in Tehran has found the three main accused of the case to be 'mohareb' (enemies of God) and 'corrupt on the earth'," he said, without disclosing when the verdict was issued. The three men were tried over the bombing of a packed mosque during evening prayers in Shiraz and also faced charges of "belonging to a terrorist group", cooperating with hostile armed groups, seeking to overthrow the Islamic system and planning to launch other attacks. (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Syria seen copying Iran cover-up tactics Nov 28, 2008
Iran has impeded a longer-running IAEA probe into intelligence material that Washington says shows Tehran illicitly studied how to design atom bombs. Iran denies this but has not provided back-up evidence, the IAEA says. (International Herald Tribune -- Technology)
* Iran announces it is now running 5,000 centrifuges Nov 28, 2008
AP, TEHRAN Friday, Nov 28, 2008, Page 6. Iran announced on Wednesday it was now running 5,000 centrifuges at the countrys single uranium enrichment plant X a substantial increase from four months ago X as Tehran flaunts Iranian nuclear achievements and the regime yet again defies UN demands to halt the controversial program ... Tehran denies the claim and insists it has the right under the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty to enrich uranium and produce reactor fuel. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- World)
Iran says it now has more than 5,000 centrifuges running Nov 27, 2008
TEHRAN - Iran announced yesterday it now has 5,000 centrifuges operating and enriching uranium, the country's latest defiance of UN demands to halt its controversial nuclear program ... He spoke to reporters during an exhibition of Iranian nuclear achievements at Tehran University ... UN officials have said Tehran would have to produce a little more than twice that to begin enriching it to the level needed to produce a nuclear weapon. (Boston Globe)
Report: Iran launches new rocket Nov 27, 2008
Explorer 2' is believed to be part of Tehran's satellite program ... July 28: "NBC Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams interviews Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the presidential palace in Tehran ... TEHRAN, Iran - Iran has successfully launched a rocket, Iran's state television reported on Wednesday. (MSNBC -- International)
Iran to try 3 it says were spying for Israel Nov 27, 2008
(11-26) 04:00 PST Tehran -- Iran has broken a spy ring working for Israeli's intelligence service, Mossad, and will seek the death penalty for three suspects in custody, Iran's prosecutor general announced Tuesday. More News. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Politics)
Iran hangs 10 murderers in Tehran Nov 27, 2008
Iran has executed 10 people convicted of murder in Tehran's Evin prison, including a woman who killed her husband and cut him into pieces. Human rights groups say Iran is second only to China in its readiness to use capital punishment. (BBC News -- Africa)
Iran launches space rocket "Kavosh 2" successfully Nov 27, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 26 (Xinhua) -- Iran launched successfully a space rocket, which is called "Kavosh 2" (Explore 2), the website of Iran's state TV IRIB reported on Wednesday. "The rocket was launched into the space and after completing its mission returned to the earth using parachute," the report said. (Xinhuanet, China)
Iran Running More Than 5,000 Centrifuges Nov 27, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran Iran's nuclear chief says Iran now has more than 5,000 centrifuges operating at its uranium enrichment plant. Wednesday's announcement marks Iran's latest defiance of U.N. demands that Tehran halt its controversial nuclear program. (Newsmax)
Iran accuses 3 of spying for Israel Nov 26, 2008
TEHRAN - Iran has broken a spy ring working for Israeli's intelligence service, Mossad, and will seek the death penalty for three suspects in custody, Iran's prosecutor general announced yesterday. The prosecutor general, Saeed Mortazavi, said that the suspects, members of Baseej, Iran's volunteer militia, were expected to get close to senior Revolutionary Guard members so that they could "assassinate military scientists and blow up strategic military and missile facilities." At a news... (Boston Globe)
Iran alleges spies linked to Israel Nov 26, 2008
July 28: "NBC Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams interviews Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the presidential palace in Tehran ... TEHRAN,Iran - Iranian official media said Tuesday that one of the detained members of an alleged Israeli-linked espionage network was involved with the elite Revolutionary Guards ... The official state news agency IRNA quoted Tehran General Prosecutor Saeed Mortazavi as saying the network formed after Israel's Mossad spy agency recruited a man who had... (MSNBC -- International)
Profile: Robert Gates Nov 26, 2008
Taxi revolution on Tehran streets. Plane makes emergency landing. (BBC News -- Americas)
Taxi revolution Nov 26, 2008
By Jim Muir BBC News, Tehran ... The bright green women's taxis are an increasingly familiar sight in Tehran ... A few minutes later, a bright green taxi draws up outside Roqaya's home in a suburb of west Tehran. (BBC News -- Africa)
Iran says has 5,000 uranium enrichment centrifuges Nov 26, 2008
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran now has 5,000 working uranium enrichment centrifuges, a senior official was quoted as saying on Wednesday, signalling an expansion of work the West fears is aimed at making nuclear bombs. "Now we have 5,000 running centrifuges," Gholamreza Aghazadeh, head of Iran's Atomic Energy Organisation, told the official IRNA news agency. (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
VIDEO: Iran Women-Only Taxi a Hit Nov 26, 2008
November 25, 2008 A women-only taxi service in Iran's capital, Tehran, has become popular. The service does not allow male passengers and hires only female drivers. (National Geographic)
Lebanese leader vows no surrender to violence Nov 26, 2008
In Tehran, the Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, denied suggestions his country was meddling. "Iran is the only country not interfering in Lebanon," he told a news conference. (Yahoo News -- Lebanon)
Iraq winds down Nov 26, 2008
Iraqis want to remain independent of Tehran, as they have now demonstrated by signing the agreement with the United States over Iran's vigorous objections. They want to avoid military conflict with Iran, and so does America. (International Herald Tribune -- Ed/Op)
Iran Further Flouts Nuclear Sanctions Nov 26, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran, Nov. 26, 2008 ... Key events in once friendly, now contentious relationship betwee 00004000 n Washington and Tehran ... (AP) Iran now has more than 5,000 centrifuges operating at its uranium enrichment plant, Iran's nuclear chief announced Wednesday, in the Persian country's latest defiance of U.N. demands that Tehran halt the controversial program. (CBS News -- World)
BMO head urges Ottawa to act decisively Nov 26, 2008
Tehran Times, Iran - Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2008. Maclean's, Canada - Tuesday, Nov. 25, 2008. (National Post)
Newsweek: N. Korean link to Iran's missiles? Nov 25, 2008
Only weeks before dropping from an official U.S. blacklist of countries that support terrorism, the Bush administration apparently thwarted the transfer of missile parts (possibly including gyroscopes for guidance systems) from to Iran, U.S. officials tell NEWSWEEK. On Aug. 4, an Ilyushin aircraft operated by North Korea's state airline was granted routine permission by to fly from Burma to Tehran via Indian airspace. Three days later, the office of India's prime minister "hurriedly" asked... (MSNBC -- International)
A new spin on Iran's nuclear fuel Nov 25, 2008
The latest anti-Iran spin is that Tehran has accumulated enough nuclear fuel for one nuclear bomb and that given Iran's rapid progress in installing more centrifuges at its uranium enrichment facility in Natanz, Iran's nuclear bomb-making capability will substantially increase in the near future ... Tehran remains confident about the ability of Pakistan's government to fight off the extremists and prevent them from accessing its nuclear arsenal ... Tehran does not foresee an imminent threat of... (Asia Times Online)
Europe is waiting to see how Obama plays Iran Nov 25, 2008
The Europeans, who talk to the Iranians directly and participate in the Council's deliberations concerning Tehran, are not sure. Bernard Kouchner, the French foreign minister, hoping that the Obama team might be listening, brought some of the European concerns to Washington two weeks ago for a speech at the Brookings Institution. (International Herald Tribune -- Technology)
33 Activist Women Arrested in Tehran Nov 25, 2008
Amnesty International yesterday demanded the swift and unconditional release of 33 prominent Iranian female activists arrested last weekend and jailed in Tehran's notorious high-security Evin prison ... On the eve of the U.S. State Department's release of its annual human rights report and only days ahead of celebrations marking International Women's Day, best-known female activists were arrested early Sunday after they gathered with placards outside Tehran's Revolutionary Court. (Yahoo News -- Women's Issues)
Lebanon president visits Tehran Nov 25, 2008
Lebanese President Michel Suleiman has held talks in Tehran with his Iranian counterpart Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ... The two presidents inspected a guard of honour at the lavish presidential palace in Tehran before heading into talks, Iranian TV reported, without elaborating on the substance of their discussion ... Iranian state radio said the "failure" of US policy in the Middle East had brought the governments in Tehran and Beirut closer together. (BBC News -- Africa)
Iran 'unhurt' by oil price fall Nov 25, 2008
The BBC's Tehran correspondent says many economists will be very sceptical about the president's analysis. Just as the world banking crisis has had no impact on Iran's economy, neither will the oil price have that much impact. (BBC News -- Africa)
UN condemns Ahmadinejad comments Nov 25, 2008
Tehran cab service puts women in the driver's seat. (Yahoo News -- United Nations)
US-backed Iraqi troops arrest Shiite militant Nov 25, 2008
Tehran denies the charges. Is Your Home 'Eco-Friendly. (ABC 7 News, DC)
Iran: Hardliners Urge Iraq to Reject Security Pact Nov 25, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran's hardline newspapers are urging the Iraqi parliament to reject a security pact with the United States that would keep American troops in Iraq for three more years. The daily Jomhuri-e-Eslami warns in a front-page editorial Tuesday that a popular uprising will erupt in Iraq if the Iraqi parliament approves the deal. (Newsmax)
Israeli hawks ready to fly on Iran Nov 24, 2008
Defeating the theocratic regime in Tehran could be economic or political or, as a last resort, military, he said. "All tools, all options, should be considered." He was speaking in the tranquillity of the Shalem Centre in Jerusalem, where he was, until last Thursday, one of Israel's plethora of warrior-scholars, though more influential than most. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Miliband to speak out over Iran Nov 24, 2008
David Miliband will say a nuclear-armed Tehran is the "most immediate" threat to Middle East stability ... "The consequent nuclear arms race would be very dangerous. The acquisition of a nuclear weapon would strengthen Tehran's regional position, injecting its attempts to stoke up division and promote instability with much greater confidence." ... "And there is much that the Arab countries could do to counter Tehran's claims that their quest for greater influence and their nuclear programme... (BBC News -- UK)
On the Brink of an Atomic Tehran Nov 24, 2008
This matters because the soon to be nuclear-armed Tehran could ignite a Middle East arms race that might end catastrophically unless President-elect Obama finds a way to quickly disarm the atomic mullahs ... In fact, since the mullahs took over in 1979, there has been no diplomatic effort -- on any subject -- that has changed Tehran s course of action ... Whether driven by its paranoia that the West seeks to occupy and control Iran or by Israel s nuclear capability, Tehran is intent on acquiring... (Human Events Online)
Letter exposes Iran's assistance to al-Qaeda Nov 24, 2008
LINKS between Iran's Revolutionary Guards and al-Qaeda have emerged after the interception of a letter from the terrorist group's leadership which hails Tehran's support for a recent attack on the US embassy in Yemen that killed 16 people ... Scores of senior al-Qaeda operatives - including Saad bin Laden - sought sanctuary in Iran following the overthrow of the Taliban, and have remained in Tehran ever since ... During his three-day stay, Mr Olmert hopes to get commitments from the US on Iran's... (Sydney Morning Herald -- World)
Commander: Iran to stage a naval war game Nov 24, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Navy Force commander Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayari said Sunday that Iran would hold a war game early December in "Oman Sea, Persian Gulf and Hurmoz Strait," Iranian Students news agency (ISNA) reported ... TEHRAN, Nov. 23 (Xinhua) -- Chairman of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Brigadier General Seyyed Mohammad Hejazi said that Iran would punish Israel's assistants in the war against the country, Iran's Press TV reported Sunday ... Iran's Speaker of... (Xinhuanet, China)
Israel Military Urges Plan for Iran Strike Nov 24, 2008
Their assessment also recommends close cooperation with the United States to prevent a deal between Washington and Tehran that would undermine Israeli interests ... The two governments suspect Tehran of seeking to develop an atomic weapon under cover of its civilian nuclear programme, a charge Iran strongly denies. (Newsmax)
Iran executes man in Israeli spy case Nov 23, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran (CNN) -- Iran has executed a man found guilty of spying for Israel, state media reported Saturday. Tehran's Revolutionary Court convicted Ali Ashtari, 45, in June of spying for Israel's intelligence agency, the Mossad, in exchange for money. (CNN -- International)
Iranian activist expands futures of her poor neighbors Nov 23, 2008
Community activist Nazanin Gohari has turned her living room in Tehran into a library for women ... TEHRAN - In her eyes, they are all daughters and sisters ... The matronly homemaker, unsure and uneducated, but discovering the world beyond the slums of southern Tehran by reading Feodor Dostoevsky and Jean-Paul Sartre. (Boston Globe)
Tibetan exiles opt for 'middle way' Nov 23, 2008
IRAN Salesman convicted of spying executed TEHRAN - Iran executed an electronics salesman convicted of relaying information on the country's nuclear program and other sensitive data to Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, a judiciary spokesman said yesterday. Ali Ashtari was hanged Nov. 17 after being sentenced to death on June 30. (Boston Globe)
'Israel spy' put to death in Iran Nov 23, 2008
Iran has hanged a telecoms engineer convicted of spying for Israel, reports from Tehran say ... Israel is a leading advocate of strong action against Tehran, which it believes is seeking to develop nuclear weapons. (BBC News)
Too big for their boots Nov 23, 2008
Not the teams in subsequent years who took points from sides with 10 times the quality of an understrength Bahrain, like Iran in 1997 who would have wiped the floor of this group, in front of a parochial Tehran crowd of 129,000, not 3000. This is a team which had the benefit of one of the world's top three coaches in Guus Hiddink to qualify for 2006 at an expense the game could never previously afford, not to mention charter flights from Montevideo and Tashkent. (Sydney Morning Herald -- Sport)
Iran hangs Israeli spy, enters serious intelligence war Nov 23, 2008
Ali Ashtari, who was arrested in February 2007 for cooperation with Israeli intelligence services (Mossad) for three years, was sentenced to death in June and was hanged in Tehran on November 17,according to the report ... " Tehran has repeatedly accused Washington of aiding "the outlawed Party for Free Life in Kurdistan (PJAK) in a bid to stir up ethnic unrest in the country. (People's Daily Online, China)
Iran criticizes IAEA report for raising baseless concerns Nov 23, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 22 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Parliament (Majlis) Speaker Ali Larijani criticized International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamed ElBaradei for raising baseless concerns in his latest report on Iran, the official IRNA news agency reported on Saturday ... Iran's Speaker of Parliament Ali Larijani listens as Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (none pictured) speaks to lawmakers in the Iranian parliament in Tehran Aug. 5, 2008. (Xinhua)
Iran denounces IAEA press leaks Nov 23, 2008
TEHRAN, Nov. 22 (UPI) -- Iranian officials say the International Atomic Energy Agency isn't doing a good enough job preventing information leaks to the news media. Iran's Mehr News, citing an unnamed diplomatic source, reported the Iranian ambassador to the IAEA, , has complained about the press leaks to IAEA Chief , the state-backed Iranian Press TV said Saturday. (United Press International)
Ahmadinejad: Iran will survive falling oil prices Nov 23, 2008
TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Iran's economy will survive falling oil prices. Iranian state television has quoted Ahmadinejad as saying the plummeting price of oil "will not cause any remarkable problems'' to the economy. He added in his remarks Sunday that the economy was self-reliant would be fine with an oil price of $5. International financial institutions estimate Iran needs oil at $90 a barrel to balance its budget and in October Iran said under-$100 a... (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
Iran could cope with oil as low as $5 - Ahmadinejad Nov 23, 2008
TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran could live with an oil price as low as $5 per barrel, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying on Sunday, in comments at odds with the views of the IMF and economic analysts. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad attends the opening of the first Asian Mayors Forum in Tehran November 19, 2008 ... "There was a time when the country managed on $9 a barrel. We can do it even if oil falls to $5," he told reporters at a media fair in Tehran, state television said,... (The Star Online, Malaysia -- News)
Lame-duck U.S., Israeli leaders to meet a final time Nov 23, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama has said he is willing to hold direct negotiations with Iran, a stance Israeli leaders have strongly opposed, saying it would reward the Tehran regime for extremism. But in what may be a sign of things to come, Israel's military intelligence chief surprisingly softened the Israeli tone this week, saying he did not strictly oppose contact between the United States and Iran. (USA Today -- News)
